


Legacy

by elirwen



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, M/M, Rape/Non-con Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-29
Updated: 2017-08-29
Packaged: 2018-12-21 07:56:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11939718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elirwen/pseuds/elirwen
Summary: Needing to keep his mind away from Merlin's sudden choice to break up with him, Arthur buries himself in work. Investigating strange spendings in science division of his company, he uncovers Morgana's secret illegal operations, Merlin an unwilling participant in her plan.(Non-con is NOT Merlin/Arthur. Detailed warnings in the end notes.)





	Legacy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tayathestrange](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tayathestrange/gifts).



> Written for Tayathestrange in exchange for her contribution to Coinelot.

Arthur’s head hurts. He swallows another painkiller and massages his temples. He’s been staring into the accounting files for over two hours, trying to make sense of the sudden increase of costs in Morgana’s division.

He asked her about it already, but he knew she was hiding something when she told him she was just getting a few pieces of new equipment for one of the labs. She was very deflective when he asked for details.

Normally, he wouldn’t even notice, but since Merlin broke up with him on Friday, he buried himself in his work, desperate to drown his sorrow. 

He really believed they could have been something more. They had been seeing each other for only a few weeks, but it’d felt different than any of his previous relationships. 

“It was a mistake. I’m leaving the country. Don’t try to contact me.” 

Arthur stares at the short message. For the hundredth time that day he wonders what went wrong. Was it his fault? Did he mess up at their last date? They kissed goodbye and there wasn’t a sign of unhappiness in Merlin’s eyes when he last saw him.

He tosses the phone aside and goes back to the files.

 

~x~

 

He really doesn’t mean to snoop. He only wants to make sure there aren’t any files forgotten on Morgana’s desk. Or maybe on her laptop.

Okay, he definitely means to snoop. He’s lucky enough that she still uses the same password as she did when she was a teenager. He’s even luckier when he finds an email that contains just a short statement “It’s ready,” a link and a password. He doesn’t want to spend more time than is strictly necessary in here, so he takes a picture of the screen, puts everything in the same order as it was before and leaves.

 

~x~

 

He feels giddy with boyish glee, successfully pulling off a spy act. But that is before he actually opens the link leading to a video feed.

The camera is trained on a single hospital bed with a too familiar figure in it. Arthur has to blink a few times to convince himself he’s seeing right. His eyes flit over the still figure. He’s covered by a thin sheet from waist down. His wrists are strapped to the sides. He supposes his legs are as well. There’s an IV leading to one of Merlin’s forearms.

Arthur’s heart is beating wild as he watches, dread spreading through his limbs. He clicks to go right to the start of the recording, quickly skimming for some explanation of this. A blonde woman entered the room a few times, adjusting the IV or massaging Merlin’s legs and arms, changing settings of the chair. There’s no sound, but Arthur can see Merlin’s lips moving. He’s not a lip reader, but he can tell that it’s ‘please’ Merlin is repeating. 

Once, the blonde comes in with another woman, unstraps Merlin, and together they walk him around the small room, taking almost all of his weight. He must be heavily drugged. Arthur knows now that Merlin is naked under the sheet. 

At six hour mark, the blonde enters again. She pulls the sheet away, lowers the back of the bed and arranges Merlin’s legs to her liking. Merlin is pleading with her, but she seems not to be listening. She only tampers with the IV when he closes his legs. Arthur can see the effect of the increased level of medication as Merlin goes boneless, his head lolls to the side. She pulls on a pair of gloves and coats two of her fingers in lube.

Arthur feels sick. He knows he shouldn’t watch. He knows he’s violating Merlin’s privacy. The blonde is obscuring his view, so he can’t actually see it, but he knows she pushes her fingers into Merlin’s opening, he can watch the rhythm she sets. She says something and Merlin shakes his head, his eyes tightly shut. She starts stroking Merlin’s cock with her other hand.

Merlin is tense as he fights with the natural reaction of his body. His breathing slowly turns erratic. The blonde reaches for a glass container, lays it down on Merlin’s belly and continues jerking him off. Merlin comes, his whole body convulsing and straining against the restraints. 

Arthur expects her to stop now, but she continues massaging Merlin’s prostate. Arthur can see the hitching of Merlin’s chest, the tears flowing from under his eyelids. He can’t watch any longer.

He shuts his laptop down and stares at his shaking hands. 

For five days he believed Merlin had left him. For five days he was drowning himself in self-pity. And all that time Merlin has been held somewhere by Morgana’s people, drugged and raped. 

How could he believe Merlin would break up with him over a text? He should have tried harder to reach him.

He takes a few deep breaths. Thinking about past mistakes won’t help him find Merlin.

 

~x~

 

Arthur researches all night. He knows now that the blonde woman comes in every two hours during daytime and milks Merlin’s prostate once a day. After more of the searching through files and connecting a lot of dots, he knows where the lab is. 

 

~x~ 

 

There’s nobody outside the lab and there’s nobody in the room leading to Merlin’s. Arthur storms inside, knowing full well the blonde must be with Merlin at the moment. She spins around as the door hits the wall, her eyes wide with surprise.

“How?” she asks.

“Get away from him!” Arthur yells. “A friend is waiting for me outside and if I’m not out in ten minutes he’ll be calling the police.”

“That’s supposed to scare me?” she asks with a smirk and outstretches her arm towards him.

She says a foreign sounding word and her eyes flash gold. Magic, Arthur realizes right before the spell hits him.

He wakes up on the floor. It takes a second for him to focus, but then he’s looking around for the woman. She’s lying on the opposite side of the room, blood trickling down her temple. Her spell must have backfired.

Merlin is calling his name from the bed, frantically asking him if he’s okay. 

Standing up is more difficult than Arthur is used to and he’s a bit unsteady on his feet as he crosses the room towards Merlin.

“I’m sorry I didn’t look for you sooner,” Arthur says, taking hold of one of Merlin’s hands. “This should never have happened. What they did to you… I’m so sorry.”

Merlin sucks in a startled breath.

“You know?” slips past Merlin’s lips, barely audible. 

“I’m sorry,” Arthur says, shame coiling in his stomach. “We need to get out of here,” he continues, releasing Merlin’s limbs from their restraints. 

Merlin doesn’t say a word, but he cooperates as much as he can, all the while avoiding eye-contact. He hisses when Arthur pulls out the IV and Arthur leans down to kiss the top of his head without thinking. He’s relieved when Merlin doesn’t pull away. 

“I’ll need to carry you to the car. Is that okay?” Arthur asks.

Merlin nods, lets Arthur help him climb down the bed, to wrap the sheet around him. All the while Arthur worries about his touches being too invasive. He’s ready to lift Merlin into his arms when Gwaine’s voice breaks the silence.

“Should have told me your sister has magic,” he says and Arthur turns to watch him and Morgana enter the room.

She’s walking with her arm outstretched, and it’s obvious she’s controlling Gwaine’s movement. 

“What a surprise to find you here,” she says with a smirk. “Did you really think you could march in here with your little puppet and save the day?”

Gwaine draws in a breath to retort, but she waves her hand and no sound leaves his mouth, no matter how hard he tries. 

“This is insane. You can’t just hold people captive and do whatever you want with them,” Arthur says, pushing Merlin who is trying to shift in front of him back behind. 

“I can’t? All I have to do is say a few words and you won’t remember anything from the past week,” she says.

“But why? What’s the point of all this?” Arthur asks.

“You have absolutely no idea. Like everyone. Magic is disappearing from the world and nobody notices,” she says, mad gleam in her eyes. “But he’s magic. He’s powerful. His legacy could change everything.”

“Please, just let them go. I’ll give you what you want,” Merlin says from behind him, once again trying to step in front of Arthur.

“No, you will not,” Arthur says and shoves him back behind, immediately regretting using too much force as Merlin wavers and collides with the side of the bed, soft gasp of pain leaving his lips before he slides down to the floor, his legs failing to support him. 

Arthur fights the urge to kneel and comfort him, but he’d have to turn his back to Morgana, and that’s just not an option.

“You’re quite a pair,” Morgana says, laughing. “Maybe I could find some spell to allow you to bear children. Maybe you’d even like it.”

That’s when Arthur’s brain puts all the pieces together. Merlin’s legacy. His children.

“You’re insane,” he says.

“I do what needs to be done,” she says and lifts her hand towards him. “Right now it’s making you forget.” 

She says the words and her eyes flash gold. Arthur feels something cold and disgusting coil around him, but it’s gone the next second. He doesn’t feel any different than before.

Morgana frowns and tries again with more anger behind the words. Nothing happens.

Merlin’s shaky laughter fills the room.

“Did you really think I’d let him walk around unprotected?” Merlin asks.

Morgana’s eyes are wide with surprise. Arthur contemplates all his options, wonders if he has the time to reach for the taser in his back pocket, but before he can decide, Merlin utters a few words and Morgana falls to the floor. 

“Just a sleeping curse,” Merlin mutters and slumps further to the side.

The sheet slides down his torso, but he seems to no longer care. Gwaine stumbles towards them, free from Morgana’s magic and shrugs off his jacket, offering it to Arthur who is already kneeling beside Merlin.

“Look at me, please,” Arthur pleads, reaching out to touch, but stopping himself in fear of startling Merlin.

Merlin lifts his head, meeting Arthur’s eyes for a second before settling his gaze on Arthur’s chest. 

“I’m going to help you stand up, okay?” Arthur says.

Taking Merlin’s silence as a yes, he guides them to a standing position. Merlin is leaning on him heavily. Arthur finally takes the offered jacket from Gwaine and helps Merlin put it on. 

“How long until she wakes up?” Gwaine voices the question Arthur was only thinking. 

“I don’t know,” Merlin says, his voice barely a whisper. 

He’s like a ragdoll in Arthur’s hands, letting him secure the sheet around his waist once more and zip up the jacket. 

“I’m calling the police,” Gwaine says.

“Could we not?” Merlin asks.

“She can’t get away with this,” Gwaine says.

Arthur didn’t tell Gwaine the details of Merlin’s captivity. He might realize sooner or later, but right now he thinks Morgana just abducted him.

“I’ll make sure she’s punished for her crimes,” Merlin says and Arthur wonders what he means. Is he planning to use more magic? Arthur doubts he has enough energy left to do that.

“You’re barely standing,” Gwaine says, mirroring Arthur’s thoughts. “You’re in no condition to do anything.”

“Can I borrow your phone?” Merlin asks and Arthur hands it to him without further delay. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me. I sort of hoped I wouldn’t have to do this for a few more months. Meeting the parents usually isn’t on the program so soon in the relationship,” Merlin adds, smiling sheepishly.

He enters a number, hits call and puts the phone to his ear. There are questions Arthur wants to ask, but he waits. It’s probably for the best. 

The phone call is short. 

A few words of reassurance.

“I’m fine, Dad, really.”

Request for patience.

“I’ll tell you everything later. I swear.” 

And finally, a plea for help.

“Could you come, please? Right now?”

Arthur knows the answer is yes when he sees Merlin’s shoulders relax. He doesn’t even need to hear Merlin’s “thanks, Dad.”

“He’ll be here in a minute,” Merlin says after disconnecting the call. 

“Does he live nearby?” Gwaine asks.

“Not exactly. I sent him a mental image of this place,” Merlin says as if it explains everything.

Which it does when there’s suddenly a tall man stepping out of a… Arthur’s not sure what to call it. There’s probably some term for it, but he’ll just go with ‘hole in space’. It closes right after the man who doesn’t hesitate before pushing past Arthur and enveloping Merlin in a hug. 

“Your mother was worried when she couldn’t reach you for your usual mid-week chat,” the man says once he pulls away.

“Never thought her worries about me being kidnapped would become reality,” Merlin answers with a chuckle.

“Did they hurt you?”

“I’m okay. You know magic suppressing drugs don’t stay in my system for long. I’m almost back to normal.”

“I also remember you passing out after we did that particular test.”

“Excuse me,” Arthur jumps into the conversation. “There’ll be time for talking later.”

He almost regrets it when the full force of the newcomer’s gaze settles on him. 

“And who are you exactly?” the man asks, looking Arthur up and down.

“Dad, I’m not fifteen. You don’t have to do the whole boyfriend intimidation routine,” Merlin says before Arthur can introduce himself. “You very well know this is Arthur.”

“Balinor Emrys,” the man introduces himself and offers Arthur his hand to shake.

“Arthur Pendragon,” Arthur says out of habit, even when it’s obvious Merlin’s father knows that already, and shakes the man’s hand, trying to appear as if he doesn’t notice Balinor’s bone-crushing grip and refusing to break eye contact.

“Are you quite done?” Merlin asks, voice weak but clearly irritated.

“What happened here?” Balinor asks.

“Long story short, she’s batshit insane and Druid Court needs to deal with her,” Merlin says, pointing at Morgana, still lying on the floor, unmoving. “She’s a bitch too,” he points at Morgause. “He saved me,” he points at Arthur, offering him a tired smile. “I’d drag them through a portal myself, but with my magic this unstable we’d end up somewhere in the middle of Welsh highlands, and I’m not really in the mood for sheep right now.”

“I’ll handle that,” Balinor says. “You head home. If you don’t show up soon, your mother will kill me.”

He closes his eyes for a moment, a new portal appearing in the middle of the room. 

“She might kill me first,” Merlin says, moving towards the portal on unsteady feet. “Are you coming?” he asks Arthur.

“If you want me to,” Arthur says.

Merlin smiles, extending his hand. 

“Call Leon. Secure the lab,” he says to Gwaine while linking his fingers with Merlin’s.

“Sure thing, boss,” Gwaine says with a mock salute.

Arthur nods his thanks and turns back to face the portal.

“Ready?” Merlin asks.

“Ready.”

Merlin grips his hand tighter and pulls him towards the portal. Arthur’s heartbeat rises, fear of the unknown settling low in his belly. He hesitates, unable to take the final step.

“It’s perfectly safe,” Merlin whispers, his thumb gently caressing Arthur’s hand. 

It gives Arthur the strength to move, closing his eyes as he enters the void. He feels weightless for a few short seconds, unnatural silence filling his ears, the warmth of Merlin’s hand the only thing stopping him from surrendering to mindless panic. And then suddenly he’s back on the ground. His knees go a bit weak and he stumbles forward before steadying himself, his eyes opening on reflex. 

“Mum!” Merlin calls out and lets go of Arthur’s hand to throw himself at a woman standing just a few feet away. 

He’s taller than her, but sagging into the hug he looks smaller, younger. She’s asking him questions a mile a minute and Merlin murmurs assurance after assurance. 

It gives Arthur time to look around. They’re standing in a large hall of what must be some old mansion, complete with antique decorations and grand staircase leading to upper floors. Arthur’s sight catches on a life-sized painting on the first landing of the stairs. A family portrait. A man and a woman, Merlin’s parents, sitting in two armchairs, smiling softly, holding hands, their knees touching in subtle show of intimacy. Arthur feels a pang of longing, missing the mother he never got to know. A third figure stands behind the armchairs, tall, lean, breathtaking. Merlin looks about ten years younger, his cheekbones sharper, hair longer, curling around his ears. His smile though, it hasn’t changed at all over the years. 

“I’m fine, I swear,” Merlin says, louder this time, pulling Arthur’s attention back to present. “But I think I need to sit down. Soon,” he says, his voice somewhat shaky. “Or now,” he adds.

Arthur moves without thinking, catching Merlin before he can slide to the floor. His grip isn’t secure enough to keep him upright, not when it seems Merlin might faint after all, so he drops to his knees, Merlin nestled in his arms. Merlin’s mother makes an alarmed noise, kneels down to fuss over Merlin who slurs something like “’m fine” that neither his mother or Arthur believe and are proven right when Merlin passes out, growing even heavier in Arthur’s hold. 

“Merlin!” his mother cries out, reaching out to tap Merlin’s cheek, getting no response. 

“He isn’t physically injured. Probably just exhausted,” Arthur tries to calm her down, even when he’s worried too. “They gave him something to block his magic and keep him docile. It’s probably not entirely out of his system,” he says. “I’m Arthur by the way,” he adds, acutely aware he’s meeting his boyfriend’s mother for the first time.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Hunith,” she says barely pulling her eyes away from Merlin. “We need to get him to bed.”

Arthur adjusts his grip on Merlin and stands up with a grunt.

“Lead the way then,” he says.

 

*

 

Merlin stirs awake while Arthur carries him upstairs to his bedroom. He panics for a second, almost causing Arthur to drop him, but then he settles into Arthur’s hold, resting his head against Arthur’s shoulder. 

“Nice of you to join us,” Arthur says, following Hunith into a spacious bedroom that is obviously no longer lived in. 

Hunith hastily pulls the duvet off the bed and moves the blanket to the side. Arthur lies Merlin down and lets Hunith tuck him in. He hovers near the bed, feeling like he’s intruding as Merlin speaks quietly with his mother, Hunith carding through her son’s hair in soothing manner, Merlin assuring her once more that he’ll be fine in no time. 

“I’ll bring you some tea and biscuits. Nothing works better than tea and biscuits,” Hunith says, giving last caress to Merlin’s face before hurrying out of the room leaving Arthur alone with Merlin.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?” Arthur asks.

“I’m sure Mum is already calling Gaius and slipping restorative potion into the tea as we speak,” Merlin says, smiling, and pats the bed beside him, inviting Arthur to sit.

Arthur doesn’t hesitate to accept his invitation, taking his place at Merlin’s side, holding Merlin’s hand. They don’t talk, Arthur running his thumb over the back of Merlin’s hand.

“Thank you,” Merlin breaks the silence. “I don’t know if I’d manage to get out of there on my own.”

“I’m sorry it took me so long,” Arthur says. “I should have known you wouldn’t break up with me over a text.”

“You came for me. That’s what matters,” Merlin says, squeezing his hand. “How did you know where to find me?”

“Numbers for research division didn’t add up, so I broke into Morgana’s laptop,” Arthur says.

“Didn’t know you were a hacker,” Merlin says.

“She’s still using the same password that she used when we were teenagers,” Arthur says with a shrug. “I found a link to the video feed from the security camera in the lab. And then I went through the company files to find where the lab was.”

“How much did you see?” Merlin asks after a short pause, looking down at their joined hands.

“I had to skim the whole recording to plan your rescue. I’m sorry,” Arthur says. 

“So you’ve seen it all,” Merlin says, his voice weak.

“I skipped the parts where she… you know... Except… When I first opened the feed and saw you, I went to the start of the recording, hoping I’d find out more. I should have turned the feed off when she... I shouldn’t have watched it. I was so shocked I couldn’t look away,” Arthur says, and this time it’s him who can’t look at Merlin. “I know it’s no excuse, but I’m really sorry. I understand if you are unable to forgive me.”

He tries to pull his hand away, to give Merlin space, but Merlin doesn’t let him, gripping his hand hard.

“I didn’t want you to see me like that. It was…” Merlin trails off, tears glistening in his eyes. “I never felt this helpless.” He blinks the tears away. “But what’s done is done. I know you enough to know that you didn’t get any pleasure from watching it.” 

“I would never,” Arthur says, needing to confirm Merlin’s words. 

“I know,” Merlin says again and turns on his side under the blanket, not letting go of Arthur’s hand.

“Did she hurt you?” Arthur asks.

“I’m fine, really,” Merlin says, shifting to find more comfortable position.

“I mean when she… used you,” Arthur chokes out. “Those injuries can be dangerous.”

“They planned to keep me there for months. She was careful not to injure me,” Merlin says, and it’s clear from his tone that he doesn’t want to discuss it further.

 

*

 

Merlin’s mother comes back with the promised tea and biscuits for both of them, but Arthur can’t really enjoy their taste, even when they’re delicious. He compliments Hunith’s baking skills anyway. It seems Merlin wasn’t wrong about the restorative potion as Arthur watches colour gradually return to his cheeks. But she must have added some kind of a sleeping draught too as Merlin starts sinking into the pillows, the empty platter which used to carry biscuits dropping from his hand to the blanket, jerking him into wakefulness for a few more moments. 

“You should rest,” Hunith tells him and Merlin doesn’t protest.

“Will you stay?” he asks Arthur. 

“If you want me to,” Arthur says and moves to drag the armchair from the corner of the room to the bed. 

“The bed is big enough for two,” Merlin mumbles, already snuggled under the blanket, his face half-buried in the pillow. 

Arthur glances at Hunith who is collecting the empty dishes onto a tray. 

“I’ll leave you boys to get some rest,” she says, smiling at him. “If you need anything just knock on the third door to the right.”

Arthur might be almost 30 years old, but hearing the mother of his boyfriend casually tell him to snuggle up with her son is something new.

“Good night, Mrs. Emrys,” he manages to say.

“Call me Hunith, dear,” she says and quietly leaves the room. 

Merlin is already out of it, his face relaxed in sleep, so Arthur sheds his shoes, socks, and jeans and crawls under the blanket. He keeps small distance between their bodies, trying to stay covered without stealing the blanket from Merlin.

Merlin mumbles something unintelligible and shifts back, pressing himself against Arthur. Arthur was worried Merlin might not want to be touched like this, but it doesn’t seem to be the case. He’s not complaining. He wraps his arm around Merlin’s waist. His body slips into the habit as if they’ve been falling asleep like this for years, even if it was only about a month before Merlin’s kidnapping that they started sleeping over in each other’s flats several times a week.

Arthur closes his eyes and lets the sound of Merlin’s steady breathing lead him to sleep.

 

*

 

Arthur wakes up to an empty bed. Before he has time to panic, the door he didn’t notice yesterday open and Merlin steps out, bath-towel wrapped around his waist, drying his hair with a smaller one.

“Didn’t mean to wake you,” he says, moving to the wardrobe in the corner.

“You didn’t,” Arthur answers, his voice thick from sleep. “How do you feel?”

“I have a bit of a headache, but otherwise I’m fine,” Merlin says, pulling a pair of jeans and a T-shirt out of the wardrobe, and steps to the cabinet right next to it, fishing for fresh pair of briefs. “You can grab a shower. I’ll find you a fresh shirt to wear if you want.”

“Yeah, that would be great,” Arthur says, getting out of the bed in no rush at all. “Are you sure you’re fine?” he asks again, playfully bumping into Merlin’s side instead of hugging him from behind, not sure if Merlin would appreciate it right now. 

“As fine as I can be right now,” Merlin says, smiling at him weakly, not trying to hide that the whole situation didn’t leave him mentally unscathed. “There’s a fresh towel under the sink and a new toothbrush in the cabinet,” he adds.

“Okay, thanks,” Arthur says and heads to the bathroom.

 

*

 

They spend the two days after the rescue in Emrys mansion. Hunith feeds them almost constantly, only allowing them breaks for Gaius’s checkup, talking to their lawyer, and strolling through the surrounding gardens and forests.

 

*

 

It’s quite shocking how fast legal system of magical community works. Balinor requests a court hearing and only two days later it’s time for Merlin’s testimony against Morgana and her collaborators.

Neither of them sleep well. Merlin’s nervousness keeps rising. Shortly before they’re supposed to leave, Merlin rushes off to the bathroom, throwing up the remnants of his small breakfast of toast and tea. Arthur presses cold wash-cloth to his neck, slowly coaxing Merlin away from the toilet and leading him to the basin to rinse his mouth and wash his face.

“I can’t do it,” Merlin says, leaning on the basin, water dripping off his face. “I can’t.”

“Come here,” Arthur says, pulling Merlin close for a hug. “You’ll do fine.”

Merlin shakes his head, gripping Arthur harder. 

Arthur rubs his back up and down, hoping it will have some soothing effect. 

“You’ll do fine,” Arthur repeats. 

 

*

 

Only minimal number of staff are present to grant Merlin at least a bit of privacy, but the whole ordeal is still painfully revealing. There are pieces from the video evidence played, thankfully not the rape bits, and those on their own are damning enough, but there is no sound feed in the video, so Merlin needs to provide information on what he heard while captured. 

Arthur squeezes Merlin’s hand in encouragement as he stands up to walk towards the witness stand. He knows Merlin is barely keeping himself together. Merlin’s voice is small and shaky as he answers the question about what was done to him. He stops several times, his throat constricting, tears running down his cheeks before he hastily wipes them away. Arthur grips the armrests tight to stop himself from running towards Merlin and dragging him away from here. 

As Morgana’s and Morgause’s lawyer takes his turn, the hearing turns uglier. He questions Merlin’s lack of consent, insinuating that the whole situation was an elaborate D/s play. The claim is preposterous and gets shot down immediately, but Merlin pretty much shuts down on the stand. He stares at the ground, reacting to questions only after they are repeated at least once. And even then it takes him long seconds to come up with answers, short and barely audible.

The judge calls for half an hour recess after Merlin is finally released from the witness chair, giving Arthur opportunity to lead him out of the room and into a small quiet courtyard in the middle of the court building. Merlin is quiet, lost in his own head. He sinks into Arthur’s embrace as Arthur wraps his arms around him. 

“You did great,” Arthur murmurs into his ear. “They won’t get away with what they did.”

Merlin breaks then, sobbing into Arthur’s shoulder.

 

*

 

His and Gwaine’s testimonies go without a hitch. The defense lawyer is trying to make it seem as if Morgana was acting in self-defense, but he doesn’t have much to stand on. 

Several more people take their place at the witness stand after that, but Arthur doesn’t stay in the courtroom for that. He drags Merlin to the nearby park and feeds Merlin chips, pleased to see some colour return to Merlin’s face. He asks questions about Merlin’s family, trying and gradually succeeding to distract him. He even gets him to smile when he talks about some of his and Gwaine’s uni shenanigans. 

They’re sharing a huge cone of ice-cream when Arthur gets the message that the judges left the courtroom to discuss the case, and the verdict should be announced soon.

 

*

 

“After careful consideration of the evidence and witness accounts, the court of Disir finds Morgana Pendragon guilty of kidnapping, holding a person against their will, accessory to sexual abuse, non-consensual attaining of a person’s semen, and non-consensual blocking of a person’s magic,” the leading judge says. “She is therefore sentenced to ten years of imprisonment and to wearing the magic blocking bracelets for the duration of her sentence.”

All the tension leaves Merlin’s body as the word ‘guilty’ leaves the judge’s lips.

“The court of Disir finds Morgause DuBois guilty of kidnapping, holding a person against their will, sexual abuse, non-consensual attaining of a person’s semen, and non-consensual blocking of a person’s magic,” the judge continues. “She is therefore sentenced to twelve years of imprisonment and to wearing the magic blocking bracelets for the duration of her sentence.”

Arthur hugs Merlin tight. He’s happy they won, but on the other hand he feels sad. Morgana is his sister after all. They grew up together. Even if they fought and argued quite a lot, they also shared a lot of moments that he’ll always remember and cherish. He vows to himself that he will visit her in prison often, that he’ll try to bring out the old Morgana, the one he remembers from their teenage years, idealistic and happy. He knows he’ll have to work hard to get through to Morgana now that he caused her current predicament, but he will do his best. She deserves a second chance.

 

*

 

They have a celebratory dinner at the Emrys manor afterwards. Balinor asks Arthur question after question about his life and his company, playing perfectly the role of a protective father wanting only the best for his only son and heir.

“Dad,” Merlin whines several times during the conversation, his voice growing more pleading each time.

“Enough,” Merlin groans, hiding his face in his palms after Balinor starts asking about Arthur’s sexual history and demanding Arthur lets Gaius test him for STDs.

Balinor’s strict expression breaks and he laughs for the first time since the dinner started, taking Arthur completely by surprise. 

“I thought you’d break sooner,” he says in between huffs of laughter. 

“I should have kept Arthur a secret forever,” Merlin grumbles, only making Balinor laugh harder.

 

*

 

Hunith watches Merlin like a hawk, not satisfied until his plate is empty. And then the situation repeats as another course is brought in. 

“I swear I’m going to burst soon,” Merlin mutters only for Arthur to hear, picking at a huge piece of cheesecake. 

“You can do it. I believe in you,” Arthur says, grinning.

“Don’t mock my suffering,” Merlin mutters, stabbing the cake with his fork. 

“Don’t you like the cheesecake?” Hunith asks. “Do you want ice-cream instead?”

“No, it’s fine. I’m just a bit full,” Merlin says.

“You’ve barely eaten,” Hunith says, and Arthur only just stops himself from laughing. 

“I had two servings of everything,” Merlin says petulantly. 

“You’re too thin,” Hunith says. 

“I promise I’ll eat the cake,” Merlin says, giving in. “But later. I’m too full now. Arthur will make sure I eat it, won’t you? He’s been trying to fatten me up too.”

“Of course,” Arthur says, mock seriously. 

“I’m glad someone will take care of my boy when I’m not there,” Hunith says, beaming at Arthur.

“Oh god,” Merlin groans. “I’m doomed.”

 

*

 

Next day Merlin moves into Arthur’s flat. As it turns out Morgana forged his signature and cancelled his lease, moving his possessions gods know where. A new tenant is already living at his old place. 

Merlin works freelance so there’s no problem with taking time off or work from home. Arthur on the other hand needs to see to his company, having to deal with Morgana’s absence. He’ll have to find a new head of science division. Preferably soon. 

Life together turns strangely natural after mere few days. They fall asleep snuggled together, wake up with Arthur sprawled on his belly, his hand usually trapped under Merlin’s body. Merlin grumbles when Arthur’s alarm clock goes off and presses soft kiss to Arthur’s lips, barely opening his eyes, before Arthur gets up and Merlin buries his face back into the pillow. For dinner, they either order takeaway or make something simple like pasta, easy enough to cook with their average cooking skills. 

They talk about Arthur’s workday, about Merlin’s clients and how the apologies for Merlin’s long absence go. After Merlin’s biweekly therapy sessions, Arthur snuggles with him under a soft blanket, making them hot chocolate, and listening if Merlin wants to talk or letting him choose what to watch on Netflix if Merlin’s not in the mood for talking. 

 

*

 

Apart from a lot of cuddling and kissing, they don’t move any further when it comes to sex. Arthur is worried about pushing Merlin too far, so he ignores his occasional erections and waits for the right time to talk to Merlin about the future of their intimate life. Except there never seems to be a right time and Merlin doesn’t bring it up either.

Until one day they argue about the best character in a movie, and Arthur proceeds with a merciless tickle attack, leaving Merlin a giggling mess. He collapses on top of him afterwards, his thigh sliding between Merlin’s legs and Merlin gasps under him, his hips hitching up.

Arthur freezes, unsure if he should put some distance between them or continue.

“Arthur,” Merlin moans, pushing up against his thigh again, taking the decision out of Arthur’s hands.

Arthur dives in for a kiss, sliding his hand under Merlin’s shirt, needing to feel Merlin’s skin under his fingers. He gets lost in the kiss as it slows down after the first passionate minute. It turns softer, more intimate. Merlin’s fingers tug at Arthur’s own shirt, demanding access to more skin. Arthur breaks the kiss, pulling off his shirt and Merlin follows suit, nearly getting himself tangled in the fabric in his haste to undress. 

Arthur doesn’t waste any more time, trails his hands down Merlin’s body, pressing his lips to Merlin’s chest, his belly, along his treasure trail.

“Gods,” Merlin gasps as Arthur pops open the button of his jeans, pulls his zipper down.

Arthur looks up at him, watching his slightly parted lips, his flushed cheeks. He pulls Merlin’s jeans off his hips together with his briefs, wraps his hand around Merlin’s already fully hard cock and gives it a few tugs. 

“Fuck,” Merlin breathes out, his hips rising to speed up Arthur’s rhythm. 

Arthur presses him back down and wraps his lips around the head of Merlin’s cock, swirling his tongue around, basking in the little noises escaping Merlin’s lips. He closes his eyes when Merlin’s hand settles on his head, the touch of his fingers on Arthur’s scalp sending tingles of pleasure through Arthur’s body, more than he would ever expect from such an innocent touch. 

He works more of Merlin into his mouth, changing speed from slow to fast and back to slow to tease, to drive Merlin mad. Merlin’s breathing turns erratic, his hips pressing up with more force, clear signal for Arthur to pull off and start jerking him off with relentless rhythm. Merlin bucks up into his hold, his breathing stopping, his eyes falling shut, expression seemingly pained when exact opposite is true. His cum lands on Merlin’s stomach, drips down Arthur’s fingers, into the hair at the base of Merlin’s cock. He melts into the mattress, his breathing slowing down, his eyes still closed.

Arthur can’t tear his eyes away from the cum on his fingers. He doesn’t know why but he’s suddenly thinking about the video. He knows everything about this is consensual, but still his hands are starting to shake, his insides twisting, his breathing turning shallow. He feels lightheaded, unreal.

“Arthur?” He barely registers Merlin’s voice. “What’s wrong?”

Raped. Merlin was raped. Long days of being used, helpless, humiliated. Of course he knew before, but there were things to do, plans to plan. It’s the first time his mind deals with the full reality of the situation.

Arthur’s head spins and he has to steady himself, palm flat on the mattress. 

“Look at me!” Merlin’s voice breaks the fog of Arthur’s shock and he does as he’s told automatically. “That’s it,” Merlin says, his voice soft. “Come here.” He’s sitting up now, reaching out.

A wave of shame washes over Arthur. He wasn’t the one raped. He should be strong, a steady support. This shouldn’t have happened. He shakes his head, his throat too tight to speak. 

Merlin shifts closer, hugs him close. 

“What’s wrong?” he asks again, his hand gentle in Arthur’s hair. 

Arthur buries his face in the crook of Merlin’s neck instead of answering, refusing to let out even a single sob, ignoring the tears stinging in his eyes. He lets Merlin guide them into lying position, a blanket covering them with a single whispered word falling from Merlin’s lips. 

“It’s okay,” Merlin whispers. “Take your time.” He presses a light kiss to Arthur’s hair.

The dam breaks, the first sob escaping Arthur’s throat. After that there’s no stopping it. Arthur tries to hide his tears, tries to swallow the sounds, but there’s just too much and he feels like he’s flying apart. Merlin rubs soothing circles over his back, murmuring calming words.

Eventually fresh tears stop flowing, sobs subdue to occasional hitches. He’s tired, his body feels heavy. He doesn’t want to move. Doesn’t want Merlin to stop petting his back.

“I’m sorry,” he croaks.

“Nothing to be sorry for,” Merlin says. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really,” Arthur says, knowing he’d break down again if he tried talking about it now.

“Okay,” Merlin says, not pressing the issue further. 

Completely wrung out, Arthur lets Merlin’s touch lead him to sleep.

 

*

 

“It’s not unusual,” Merlin says, sipping his tea. “It didn’t happen to you but you’re allowed to feel traumatized too.”

“It doesn’t seem fair to you,” Arthur says, staring into his own cup.

“That’s not how it works,” Merlin says. “You could talk to my therapist.”

“I don’t think that would help,” Arthur says. “I was never good at discussing my feelings with strangers.”

They drink their tea in silence, lost in thoughts. Arthur can almost physically feel Merlin’s gaze on him which only makes him stare harder at the small stain on the table, not ready to look up.

“We never really talked about those six days,” Merlin says. “Or we did, but just about facts. Not about what it felt like.”

“I thought you wouldn’t want to,” Arthur says. 

“My therapist thinks I should talk to you about it,” Merlin says. “I thought it would be better if I dealt with it alone. But I forgot that I might not be the only one who would benefit from talking about what happened.”

“I still don’t understand how it could help anything.”

“We both need some sort of closure,” Merlin says. “Maybe there will be none, but I think we should still talk more. Keeping it all inside obviously isn’t doing us any favour. Maybe you noticed that I still have nightmares.”

Arthur nods. Merlin tends to press himself close to Arthur after waking up from his nightmares. It rarely wakes Arthur up completely, but it usually rouses him into the state of near-wakefulness. He suspects he mumbles something at these times, hopefully something nice for Merlin to hear and not some completely random babble, and cuddles Merlin close before drifting off to deep sleep once more.

“I know you’ve seen the first time Morgause… uh… did her thing,” Merlin says with a nervous chuckle. “And I know you skipped all the other times.”

“Yeah,” Arthur confirms, not understanding where Merlin might be going with this.

“The first time, she gave me just enough sedatives to keep me docile, but not enough to knock me out completely. I think she wanted to break me, to show me she’s in charge,” Merlin says, his voice shaking just a little bit. “I was scared at first, humiliated and very uncomfortable. She wasn’t particularly gentle. She didn’t hurt me, but it wasn’t pleasant either. Afterwards I just felt numb and couldn’t believe it actually happened.”

“It’s my fault,” Arthur says. “If I weren’t dating you, my sister would never have found out about you.”

“I know your ego is huge, but not everything is about you,” Merlin says, smiling. “I come from a long line of dragonlords.”

Arthur straightens up, eyes widening in surprise. He knew Merlin’s family was well off, but he didn’t suspect him to be a dragonlord. If magical community had aristocracy, dragonlords would be somewhere at the top, maybe even at the level of royalty.

“Plus there are some pesky little prophecies about me being the most powerful sorcerer of our time who will help save the world in the time of its greatest need,” Merlin says, his tone longsuffering, dismissive. “I keep telling people to stop worshipping me like some sort of messiah. I still think they got it all wrong. I’m definitely not a second side of a coin of some descendant of ancient kings. I don’t even know anyone with ties to royalty.”

Arthur’s surprise grows and he opens his mouth to speak, but shuts it again a second later. He’s not going to mention now that his ancestors believed their bloodline to be tied to ancient royalty. 

“Anyway, Morgana knew about me long before I even met you. I bet she even had some evil intentions, but me dating you gave her the perfect opportunity to put her plan to action. She’d probably just do it later if I weren’t dating you.”

“That’s a big ‘probably’,” Arthur says.

Merlin shrugs with a grin. 

“Okay, I was heading somewhere before your ego interrupted me,” Merlin says.

“You’re the one to talk,” Arthur mutters, still reeling from all the information about Merlin he just received.

Merlin grins sheepishly.

“So, I was talking about Morgause, right? That she didn’t knock me out the first time. Well, she pretty much knocked me out every time after that. I don’t really remember much more than dreading the time she’d come and increase the amount of sedatives. I hated the feeling of being forcibly pushed towards unconsciousness only to wake up sorer than before, smelling of antiseptic wet wipes,” Merlin says, his nose wrinkling in disgust. “This is what my nightmares are about most of the time. About being unable to use magic, about being forced into unconsciousness.”

“Is there something I could do to help you with that?” Arthur asks.

“You already help,” Merlin says with a smile. “You work better than any sleeping potion ever brewed,” he continues. “I just wanted you to know that I’m not scarred sexually all that much because I think that’s what your mind got stuck on last night. Correct me if I’m wrong.”

“I guess you might be right,” Arthur says after a few moments of consideration. “I think I never let myself think about what happened. And then it dawned on me with no warning.”

“Should we take it slow then?” Merlin asks. “I would rather not have you panicking after giving me a mind-blowing orgasm. Bit of a mood killer,” Merlin jokes. 

“I don’t think it will happen again,” Arthur says. “But slow will be probably better.”

“Okay,” Merlin says, smiling softly, and reaches out across the table, laying his hand on top of Arthur’s. “But I reserve the right to make you come first this time.”

Arthur smiles, ducking his head and linking his fingers with Merlin’s and stroking the back of his hand absentmindedly. 

“I don’t know how you feel about bottoming right now, but I don’t feel ready to top yet,” Arthur says, surprised how easy it became to talk about all this in such a short amount of time.

“There’s so much we can do apart from real sex,” Merlin says, emphasizing the word real by making air quote with his free hand, making Arthur smile again.

“I meant I wouldn’t be averse to bottoming,” Arthur says. 

“Wow. And now you expect me to go slow? You’re a horrible tease,” Merlin says with mock indignation.

“Well, you know they say that a bit of waiting makes the reward taste sweeter,” Arthur says and watches Merlin stand up and round the table.

He shifts his chair back at Merlin’s impatient shooing gesture and lets him plop into his lap.

“Horrible. Tease. Deserve. Punishment,” Merlin says, punctuating each word with a soft kiss, making Arthur grin and pull Merlin flush against his body for a proper snogging session.

 

*

 

“Are you okay?” Arthur asks after watching Merlin spend more time shifting his food around the takeout container and less time eating.

“Hmm?” Merlin looks up from his meal, obviously pulled from his musings. 

“Is something troubling you?” Arthur asks.

Merlin looks back down to his meal, viciously stabbing the food several times, before speaking. 

“Morgana shared some information in exchange for shortening her and Morgause’s sentence,” Merlin says and goes back to torturing his meal.

“And?” Arthur asks, taking the container from of Merlin’s grip.

Merlin heaves out a sigh, leaning back against the backrest of the couch. Unease settles in the pit of Arthur’s stomach, and he wishes Merlin would just spill it out, but he holds himself back and waits for him to speak.

“Turns out they managed to run the first round of implanting fertilized eggs. There were three subjects. Two didn’t take, one did,” Merlin says, his tone flat.

“You mean…” Arthur trails off, shocked. 

“Seems I’m going to be a father,” Merlin says, staring at the ceiling. 

“Well, fuck…” Arthur says, not capable of more complex reaction.

“Yeah…” Merlin says, his eyes not leaving the ceiling. “I’m meeting the woman on Monday. Apparently Morgause told her I was a willing participant in their plan.” He leans forward, propping his elbows on his thighs. “It all feels so surreal.”

“Do you want me to go with you?” Arthur asks. 

Merlin closes his eyes, considering the offer for a few moments. 

“Yeah, I guess I do,” he says eventually, letting out a shaky breath. 

 

*

 

The woman, Sefa Seaworth, turns out to be sweet and nice to talk to. She seems genuinely upset about the whole situation, even apologizing for falling for Morgause’s lies. 

Apparently, she was offered a choice. Either to keep the baby after it would be born, care for it with the help from the fund for magically gifted children which Morgana would be managing, or give up the baby and receive generous compensation for her contribution to the cause. She didn’t decide before the truth about the whole baby making scheme came into the light, and obviously, she has no idea what to do now, so they schedule to meet again a week later and talk more about future plans.

Before she leaves, Merlin presses a business card into her hand.

“Gaius has been our family doctor for years. He even helped Mum when my baby-self insisted on finally getting to see the world,” Merlin says with a smile. “Feel free to call him. He’ll provide you with any medical care you might need during your pregnancy.”

“Thank you,” she says, smiling back.

“I just want you to know that you don’t have to fear being left alone to deal with all this. Morgana’s funding might no longer be available, but I will make sure you are provided all the necessary financial support,” Merlin promises, his expression solemn. 

Arthur knows he means every word, warm feelings fluttering through him at seeing his boyfriend so selfless and protective even when it’s not him the selflessness and protectiveness is aimed at this time.

 

*

 

5 years later

“Stop it!” Merlin hisses. “We’ll never finish like this.”

“Can’t,” Arthur says, his grin widening even more. “I’m married,” he adds, his voice full of glee.

“Yeah, I know,” Merlin says. “Me too.” Grin spreads over his own face. 

Arthur pecks him on the lips. And then again. And again. Until Merlin breaks and pulls him in for a proper kiss. 

“Could you two focus for a minute?” Gwaine says, playing with the settings of the camera. “Some of us are trying to work here.”

“Sorry, Mr. Always Professional,” Arthur says, and Merlin hides his grin in Arthur’s shoulder.

 

*

 

“How’s Jimmy doing?” Arthur asks Percy as they watch Merlin and Sefa, each holding the little boy’s hand, spinning in circles on the dance floor, Jimmy’s giggles audible over the music. 

“He’s a tireless menace,” Percy says, but smiles in the direction of his wife and adopted son. 

“We could babysit for you again if you and Sefa need a bit of alone time,” Arthur says, sipping from his glass of wine.

“Might take you up on that offer,” Percy says and they fall into companionable silence, watching their spouses wreaking havoc on the dance floor. 

“Merlin is great with kids,” Percy says after a while.

“Yeah,” Arthur says.

“Any plans?” Percy asks. 

“We don’t want to rush into anything,” Arthur says, shrugging.

They both want kids eventually, but haven’t decided anything yet. What no one, not even Merlin, knows is that Arthur didn’t forget Morgana’s comment from years ago and has been doing his own research on magical male pregnancy.

 

*

 

“I love you, you know,” Merlin says, sated and sleepy, his softening cock nestled between Arthur’s thighs. “I’ll love you forever and ever.”

Arthur turns around, messing up the lavish sheets of their huge honeymoon suite bed even more, and covers Merlin’s body with his own, pressing their lips together.

“I love you too, you utter sap,” he says, pouring all his love into the kiss.

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings: nonconsensual handjobs and prostate milking, restraints, kidnapping, drugging
> 
>  
> 
> [My tumblr.](http://elirwen.tumblr.com)


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